Thought I'd seen or at least heard of practically all the techniques years ago; then there was the fire piston, which was a completely new principle. Now this:

http://www.wmuma.com/tracker/skills/fire/cokeandchocolatebar/index.html

I'll reserve judgement until I actually try it, and it's not on the schedule for this weekend. <img src="images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" /> Definitely something I wouldn't have thought of, though.

Looks like a source for an improvised signal mirror as well. The wonders of the soda can.

Alcohol / esbit stove

fire starter

signal mirror

rust stripper / paint remover

stimulant

decent beverage container

Well it's not duct-tape but it is useful nonetheless.

Came across that site several months ago and saved the page info. for future reference...as in "when I'm busy not doing anything" <img src="images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" /> Hate to think what # it is on the "to do list" . Found it interesting and something to file away in the back of the head as an alternative method for use if I find myself up the creek with a coke can and no paddles or matches. LOL

Who knows? At the minimum, if you are able to do this on any kind of a consistent basis, it might be worthwhile, if only for winning a bet of some sort.

Hehehe - now I would not have thought of that! I think I'll try it, but with some Mother's Aluminum and Chrome polish and maybe a buffer first.

I would expect toothpaste to be a faster polish than the chocolate - hope someone else here tries out the chocolate and reports back.

I have GOT to try this. <img src="images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

As an aside, my brother once read an article about the prisons (in the UK?) banning the sale of Kit Kat chocolate bars. Seems the inmates had figured out how to make parabolic reflectors out of the aluminium foil the Kit Kat bars were wrapped in, and were using them to melt heroin so they could inject it. (Apparently, all the other chocolate bars sold in the commissary had abandoned aluminium foil in the wrapping.)

As my brother said, shaking his head in wonder, "They can't prevent them from smuggling in heroin, but they think they can prevent them from smuggling in Kit Kats." <img src="images/graemlins/confused.gif" alt="" />

What a barbaric waste of good chocolate. <img src="images/graemlins/tongue.gif" alt="" />

Actually, it might be worth the effort for those of us with Photon pop can stoves to polish the bottom of the can/stove as a backup firestarter.

I tried this a few months back when it first hit the forum. I can report that chocolate is not a terribly good polishing agent. I worked at it for quite awhile, but couldn't get a shiny enough surface with the chocolate. It also makes a really big mess. I hadn't thought of toothpaste though, that's a good idea.

Unless you are really bored, I would eat the chocolate and find a different polishing agent.

Greg

I don't recall that there was any requirement that it actually be good chocolate. They showed toblerone (which is decent but not actually good - don't you live near enough to Giradelli Sq to know <img src="images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" /> ) But you could probably get away with using a hersheys dark chocolate bar. I suspect that the active element here is the crushed chocolate beans which means it could probably be done with used coffee grounds. (I'd never waste coffee of any level of quality <img src="images/graemlins/shocked.gif" alt="" />- but after brewing It might be useable for this)

... or perhaps the bottom of a cup of turkish coffee!